| Hip-hop is a genre notorious for careers that fizzle after strong debuts, a lack of artistic development, and for years to pass between albums. On his third album in just two years, DMX breaks these- -and nearly every other--"rule" of the game: the pre-eminent thug rapper of his time, he includes sensitive, religious poetry in his liner notes; though he sticks with the formula that's served him so well in the past DMX is a talented songwriter, and his compositions get more interesting--and more subtle--on X; and though he could get nearly any guest star he'd want, DMX eschews even his Ruff Ryder posse pals (except for "D-X-L", which features the Lox and Drag-On) on 11 guest-less tracks. Ryders uber-producer Swizz Beatz shows up for 4 strong tracks but is nearly matched by Irv Gotti and a pair of largely unknown Ruff Ryders house producers, Shok and P. Killer Trakz. In fact, the only thing conventional about the album is the first track--the eminently skippable, obligatory introductory skit. Start with track two and enjoy. --Randy Silver |
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